Our Environmental Record, in Numbers

Short answer: Conner Hats runs a 15 kW, 58-panel solar array that powers 100 percent of its Florida warehouse electricity, maintains a one-acre permaculture food forest on that same site, and has planted and maintained 2,000 native hoop pines on family land near its Byron Bay factory for more than 25 years. Tags are FSC paper printed in a certified FSC print house; inner labels are GOTS organic cotton; wool is non-mulesed Australian wool.

This page exists because sustainability pages usually list intentions. These are things already built, planted or switched, with the numbers attached. Updated September 2026.

Energy

  • 15 kW, 58 solar panels, installed on our St Augustine, Florida warehouse on Earth Day, 22 April 2015. It currently covers 100 percent of the warehouse's electricity use. See St Augustine, Florida.

Land

  • 2,000 native hoop pines, planted and maintained on family owned property about 35 km from our Byron Bay factory, growing for over 25 years as a carbon offset. See Byron Bay.
  • One acre of permaculture food forest on the grounds of the original Florida warehouse, on what used to be mown lawn.

Materials

  • Non-mulesed Australian wool in our felt hats.
  • GOTS organic cotton inner labels, printed with vegetable dyes; 90 percent of our inner sweatbands are GOTS organic cotton.
  • FSC paper hang tags, which we print ourselves in a certified FSC print house and send to each of our factories.
  • Recycled PET woven labels, made from plastic bottles, with non-toxic heat-seal glue that costs us more than the standard.
  • A line of hats made from recycled plastic bottles.
  • 100 percent recycled paper for office paper, hang tags, catalogues and point-of-purchase material.

Plastic removed

  • Single-use plastic garment bags gone; hats now ship protected in recyclable and recycled paper.
  • Plastic hang tag connectors replaced with biodegradable string.
  • Metal emblems no longer individually bagged in plastic — they arrive flat on cardboard, which removes thousands of small plastic pouches.

Factory

  • Our Byron Bay factory is a fume free zone using only non-toxic glues, in a small family run operation using mostly Australian and New Zealand raw materials.
  • All leather carries a Declaration of Conformance against EC Directives 91/173 and 2002/61, confirming no banned substances, azo dyes, prohibited metals or brominated flame retardants.

What we have not done

We are not carbon neutral and we do not claim to be. Our hats are made in factories we do not own outright in more than one country, and shipping them has a footprint. The list above is what is finished, not what is planned. More detail: our responsibility initiatives and responsibly made hats.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Conner Hats warehouse solar powered?

Yes. On Earth Day, 22 April 2015 we installed 15 kW of solar — 58 panels — on our St Augustine, Florida warehouse, and it currently powers 100 percent of the building's electricity needs.

Does Conner Hats offset its carbon footprint?

We offset a percentage of our carbon footprint by planting and maintaining 2,000 native hoop pines on family owned land about 35 km from our Byron Bay factory. They were planted on our own land and have been growing for more than 25 years.

What is the Conner Hats food forest?

We maintain a one-acre permaculture food forest on the grounds of our original Florida warehouse, on land that was previously mown lawn.

What are Conner Hats hang tags and labels made from?

Hang tags are made from FSC paper and printed in a certified FSC print house, then sent to each factory. Inner labels are GOTS organic cotton printed with vegetable dyes, and woven labels are made from recycled PET with non-toxic heat-seal glue.

Does Conner Hats use mulesed wool?

No. Our wool is non-mulesed Australian wool.